1971 Plymouth Hemi Cuda Clone - Hemi Cuda, Part III

After more than a year of waiting, and waiting some more, it's done. This no-holds-barred, build-a-brand-new '71 HemiCuda clone is out on the street, drawing crowds at cruise nights and blasting down the dragstrip.

So, what has been done with the car since it was let loose from Ultimate Rides? Well, exactly what's described above, as a matter of fact.

As soon as the car arrived in California, we snuck it up to Los Angeles County Raceway, where even in an out-of-tune state (it had a mongo-serious bog we didn't have time to cure) it made a few respectable passes down the track. After many chances to drool over the paint and bodywork, Hemi mill, new Year One interior, and generally flawless car-crafting efforts, we headed out to a few local cruise nights to test the car's wow factor. The tune-up when it came to blowing the troops away at a local gathering was in top form, as the car was the center of attention in the cruise-in parking lot.

Now that we've got your attention, here's a final look at this awesome street machine that was outlined last month and in the Jan. '98 issue of CC. While not an original HemiCuda, it's still a real one as evident by its 510-horse Elephant that makes it just as cool as any Hemi E-body built by the factory before it--if not more so.